Club Obi Wan

Hi guys. Looking for a little help again, if you'd be so kind.

Basically, I already own a shrunken lamb Raiders Hero jacket from Wested which I'm delighted with but want to keep solely for cosplaying. Subsequently, I want to get another jacket that I can use for general day to day wear and, seeing as it's my favourite movie of all time, I've got my eyes on the Temple of Doom variant.

I was just wondering if any of the folks here who have a Wested ToD can give me any pointers regarding which options to go for when ordering, keeping in mind I want to go for as screen-accurate a jacket as possible.

Are there any inconsistencies in the fitting (such as the back hang/shoulder droop of the Raiders Hero) that I need to take into account when choosing the various measurements?

What is the best skin to go for in terms of screen accuracy (they offer authentic brown lambskin, authentic brown goatskin and pre-distressed lambskin)?

For the side straps, which do I choose between:
D-rings + X-box stitch;
D-rings;
Buckles + X-box stitch;
Buckles?

I'm assuming I should get an all-cotton lining for screen accuracy, but that would be my personal preference anyway.

Anything else I need to take into account when placing my order?

Thanks again, guys. Any help from you fine folks would be much appreciated, as always.

The side vents are not done screen accurately. Send them pictures of what you would like them to be if you want them screen accurate!! They didn't do mine as I asked but by the time I let them know, and they responded, I had already given it a shower.

They will use the black cotton liner as it was in Temple if you ask as well.

I have a shrunken lamb Wested Temple, and honestly I prefer my Steele and Jones Temple over the Wested.

Not that I don't like mine, because I do wear it often. They do not have the "eagle claw" buckles anymore however. I ordered a lot when I could find them, and sent them to Wested when they made my last Temple jacket. I have a lot more if you need some, I can help out.

As far as the leather goes...I am dying to know what the pre-distressed hide looks like. Interested to see if that's what you go for.

Teneas

The pre-distressed lamb is unsuitable for any Indy jacket, if you want screen accuracy. It's a nice looking leather but far too light in colour, almost yellowy. The other two options of the authentic lamb and the Goat, would be better. I have a ToD in the authentic lamb, it's fine. Not accurate in the buckles as mentioned, but that's a small detail I'm not overly concerned about. I wasn't aware of the side vents not being accurate? I understand the pattern is copied from Noel Howards screen used ToD, so why would the vents not be accurate. Also I don't think the ToD lining was black, it was probably a darker brown, but not black. Certainly not seeing a black lining when I look at the movie. The pockets though on the ToD are small and less practical than the Raiders or LC jackets.

I'll post pictures of the vent and black lining when I get around my computer.

And I'm there now. First off, black liner:





Secondly, the vent:

How it should look:


How they do it:

The doom has no black liner. Its very dark brown. The material reminds of soem sort of parachute lining.

Original jacket tried on.


The vents are open vents line tenas mentioned. Its the most aluring and uniqie feature of all the Jackets Ford wears. Some hate, some love it.


Same goes for the buckles. They are super unique as they have to claws in the Tri glides. These buckles are very rare. I am glad I have them on my jacket

I agree it's not a black liner. Black is very harsh. You're seeing a dark brown liner at best.

Teneas, when did you get your jacket made?

My vent is correct. (2009)



The very first few were wrong as the machinists misinterpreted the pieces, if it's slipped again I will let them know.

Yeah, My ToDs have been made like Teneas. 2015-2016

Whoa, KT - that jacket looks way too new. You need to distress that baby Temple-style!

whipwarrior wrote:Whoa, KT - that jacket looks way too new. You need to distress that baby Temple-style!

Pics where new out of the bag.

It's the washed goat he had back then.... hardly ages at all!

Yeah, I heard that goat hide is a real goat to distress!

Regardless on the color, I'm glad I got black liner. LOL.

My jacket was made about 1.5 yeats ago I believe. Holt and I had a lot of discussion on the vent and Wested still didn't do it. They did offer to redo the jacket with correct vent but I never sent it back.

I actually think it looks good with the black liner. I'm sick of seeing brown lining in my Westeds.

The other thing that's put me off ordering any more ToDs from Wested. The zippers. Two had the wrong head and two had very sticky zippers.

My Wested Temple is from mid-2016, and it definitely has the wrong vent. I went for authentic brown lamb, and was disappointed. It ended up very gray underneath, and had a different physical feel from my late-2015 ABL LC. Construction-wise it's fine, and the jacket sits/hangs exactly the same on me as it does in the movie. I still wear it from time to time, but haven't had the urge to distress it. I am glad that I own it, but I really wish I had gone with a Steele & Jones Temple. My S&J LC and Raiders get worn all the time and I love them.

People might remember I distressed the heck out of mine and I love it!!!!

Here we go!

Amazing distressing job Holt.


I really love the ToD pattern. It was my favourite Indy jacket, before I got into appreciating Indy jackets.

Thanks!

I love aging jackets. Its a art thing or spiritual thing for me doing this.

Holt, if you keep posting pix of your magnificently distressed jackets, folks will start sending you theirs for the same treatment. It looks like you have the art form down to a science!

Thank bud. I have been getting a few requests about it to be honest.

Aging stuff and jackets in particular is like painting to me. Its a very slow process and keep going over it til the perfect look.

A few years back, I sent a pre-owned LC jacket to knibs for screen-accurate distressing, as he is the resident U.S.-based expert. I'm anxious to see what he does with the new Wested LC Hero!

Trust me. This new wested hero, when I get, is going thru the ringer big time.

But first. The white label LC all the way.

After the holidays, I may opt for a ToD jacket - to me, personally, it's the best / most realistic looking distressing of all the Indy jackets. A truly 'lived in' look and feel overall. But, that's just me...to each his own, lol.

Thanks for the pics as I hope more folks post additional pics of their ToD jackets as well to see how it wears and fits, etc. Looks like the only two current hide offerings are authentic lamb and authentic goat. I hope that the authentic goat isn't too light in color as I tend to prefer darker color brown Indy jackets. Btw, where is that Noel Howard screen-used ToD Indy jacket at now if I may ask please - just out of curiosity?

That's the million-dollar question. As I recall, Noel's family loaned it to Peter for duplication at Wested after Noel's passing in 2008, and it was returned to them afterwards. So I would assume the jacket is in their possession, unless they sold or donated it to a cinema museum or archive. Either way, it's somewhere in Britain.

Some interesting discussion and tips here. Thanks guys.

Our desire will be satisfied in a few weeks when the LC Hero jackets start arriving!

Hey BobbyM. Did you ever order this jacket? If so, how did it turn out? I'm hoping to order one but am discouraged by the recent side-vent issues and lack of accurate sliders.

I did indeed order one. It arrived a couple of days after Christmas and I'm delighted with it.

When placing the order with Wested I did inquire as to whether it was possible to have the screen-accurate vents but, sadly, they told me it wasn't something they could offer. Pretty much what I expected, though, and it was never going to be a deal-breaker.

I figured that, seeing how they couldn't do the correct vents, I may as well go for a more personalised jacket rather than striving for total screen-accuracy. Don't get me wrong, I'm big on the whole "perfect replica" concept - but I already had that with the Raiders Hero jacket and thought it would be fun to veer off a little on this Temple jacket and go more for personal preference. For example, whether screen-accurate or not, I really liked the suggestion in this thread of having black lining on the jacket and thus opted for that along with a few other personal requests.

Here are the specs I ended up going for, as sent to Wested:


Custom Temple of Doom Jacket
Authentic Brown Lambskin
Size 42
Back Length 24
Sleeve Length 24
No Facing
Black All-Cotton Liner
Short Side Adjustment Straps With Buckles & X-Box Stitch
Extra Inside Pocket With Zip
Original "Leather Concessionaires" Collar Label


Overall, I couldn't be happier with how it turned out. It says on the Wested website that the ToD is the most tailored of all the Indy jackets and I think that must be true as it's pretty much a perfect fit on me. My Raiders Hero in shrunken lambskin has the exact same sizes all round, but the ToD is the better fit because it lacks those slight nuances of the Raiders Hero that result in some slight inconsistencies. That said, I do think the ToD has a slight off-the-neck hang akin to the Raiders Hero (but not as dramatic), although that may just be the way it sits on me. In terms of the skin, the authentic brown lamb is darker than the shrunken lamb of my Raiders Hero while having the same lightweight drape with a little more sturdiness. I bought this ToD as a regular wear jacket (saving the Raiders Hero for full cosplay) and, having worn it a few times now, it's already breaking in nicely and developing some characteristic creases.

I think I'd have to say that I like the overall look of the ToD best of all the Indy jackets, to be honest. I know that some people aren't that keen on the smaller front pockets in terms of practicality, but I think they look the business and compliment the rest of the jacket perfectly. I'm also a big fan of the extra-chunky silver zip, and the combined aptly darker look of the jacket is more to my taste. OK, so I may be slightly biased given that Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom is my favourite film EVER, but I do think that this is a really fantastic jacket.

Since getting into the Indygear hobby last year, I've bought three Wested jackets:

Raiders Hero in shrunken lambskin;
Cotton "Summer Raiders";
Custom Temple of Doom in authentic brown lamb.

Of those three, I'd say the ToD is definitely my favourite and, when this one has finally given up the ghost, I wouldn't hesitate to order another (although I must confess I am tempted to get one of those new Last Crusade Heros some time soon).

Hope that review was of help.

Congrats on getting what you wanted! Would love to see photos.

Great review! Thanks for taking the time to write it up. I'm glad you like it!
Any pictures of the front, back, lining, and vent?
How does the room in the chest/shoulder area compare to the ROLA?

BobbyM wrote:I did indeed order one. It arrived a couple of days after Christmas and I'm delighted with it.

When placing the order with Wested I did inquire as to whether it was possible to have the screen-accurate vents but, sadly, they told me it wasn't something they could offer. Pretty much what I expected, though, and it was never going to be a deal-breaker.

I figured that, seeing how they couldn't do the correct vents, I may as well go for a more personalised jacket rather than striving for total screen-accuracy. Don't get me wrong, I'm big on the whole "perfect replica" concept - but I already had that with the Raiders Hero jacket and thought it would be fun to veer off a little on this Temple jacket and go more for personal preference. For example, whether screen-accurate or not, I really liked the suggestion in this thread of having black lining on the jacket and thus opted for that along with a few other personal requests.

Here are the specs I ended up going for, as sent to Wested:


Custom Temple of Doom Jacket
Authentic Brown Lambskin
Size 42
Back Length 24
Sleeve Length 24
No Facing
Black All-Cotton Liner
Short Side Adjustment Straps With Buckles & X-Box Stitch
Extra Inside Pocket With Zip
Original "Leather Concessionaires" Collar Label


Overall, I couldn't be happier with how it turned out. It says on the Wested website that the ToD is the most tailored of all the Indy jackets and I think that must be true as it's pretty much a perfect fit on me. My Raiders Hero in shrunken lambskin has the exact same sizes all round, but the ToD is the better fit because it lacks those slight nuances of the Raiders Hero that result in some slight inconsistencies. That said, I do think the ToD has a slight off-the-neck hang akin to the Raiders Hero (but not as dramatic), although that may just be the way it sits on me. In terms of the skin, the authentic brown lamb is darker than the shrunken lamb of my Raiders Hero while having the same lightweight drape with a little more sturdiness. I bought this ToD as a regular wear jacket (saving the Raiders Hero for full cosplay) and, having worn it a few times now, it's already breaking in nicely and developing some characteristic creases.

I think I'd have to say that I like the overall look of the ToD best of all the Indy jackets, to be honest. I know that some people aren't that keen on the smaller front pockets in terms of practicality, but I think they look the business and compliment the rest of the jacket perfectly. I'm also a big fan of the extra-chunky silver zip, and the combined aptly darker look of the jacket is more to my taste. OK, so I may be slightly biased given that Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom is my favourite film EVER, but I do think that this is a really fantastic jacket.

Since getting into the Indygear hobby last year, I've bought three Wested jackets:

Raiders Hero in shrunken lambskin;
Cotton "Summer Raiders";
Custom Temple of Doom in authentic brown lamb.

Of those three, I'd say the ToD is definitely my favourite and, when this one has finally given up the ghost, I wouldn't hesitate to order another (although I must confess I am tempted to get one of those new Last Crusade Heros some time soon).

Hope that review was of help.

Glad you like the black liner! I prefer it myself, even though I was wrong on it being SA. ToD is the only jacket I will buy, as I do not like larger yokes, and prefer the small pockets, and vents.

Happen to have any pictures of the jacket back and front and liner?